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NeoGAF Games of the Year 2012 Awards
- Thread starter timetokill
- Start date
SatelliteOfLove
Member
I was waiting on this.
I think you and to a greater extent me had lists where folks each pick at most 2 games, throwing our numbers so low that we appeared on no one else's lists. Or, at least I think that's how that works. :\
Natural Selection 2 not even in the top 100...
Well, at least three of my votes were in the top 20.
At least I had some good people to fight the good fight with:
1. Saige (103)
2. Valygar (85)
3. chixdiggit (84)
4. Felix Lighter (83)
5. Nakayumi (80)
6. Alextended (78)
7. Mazzo (77)
7. Uriah (77)
9. Miletius (76)
10. Myzer (73)
Well, at least three of my votes were in the top 20.
At least I had some good people to fight the good fight with:
1. Saige (103)
2. Valygar (85)
3. chixdiggit (84)
4. Felix Lighter (83)
5. Nakayumi (80)
6. Alextended (78)
7. Mazzo (77)
7. Uriah (77)
9. Miletius (76)
10. Myzer (73)
Incendiary
Banned
It's interested that while there were only 300 more ballots counted in 2011, there's over 1000 points in difference between Journey and Portal 2 for top game.
In fact, in the top 10 in 2011, there were 11262 points spread between the top games, while this year there was only a 6191 point spread. As far as I can tell the point system is the same, and at 20 points a ballot, there should be a 6000 point difference across the whole voting process, and yet there is just a little less than 6000 points difference in just the top 10.
I guess that means more games in 2012 got a higher percentage of the votes than in 2011. The points must have been spread out more equally once you get past the top 10. Interesting. I wonder if you can take away that 2012 had a more balanced roster of games over the course of the year, but 2011 had more breakout hits and was kind of top-heavy, with many people liking the same games but not having a ton of middle ground.
Apologies if this was talked about already. Sometimes I like analyzing statistics.
In fact, in the top 10 in 2011, there were 11262 points spread between the top games, while this year there was only a 6191 point spread. As far as I can tell the point system is the same, and at 20 points a ballot, there should be a 6000 point difference across the whole voting process, and yet there is just a little less than 6000 points difference in just the top 10.
I guess that means more games in 2012 got a higher percentage of the votes than in 2011. The points must have been spread out more equally once you get past the top 10. Interesting. I wonder if you can take away that 2012 had a more balanced roster of games over the course of the year, but 2011 had more breakout hits and was kind of top-heavy, with many people liking the same games but not having a ton of middle ground.
Apologies if this was talked about already. Sometimes I like analyzing statistics.
How the what the huh?! No, I don't think that definition makes Thief or Deus Ex platformers in any way. The core focus in Deus Ex and Thief in no way involve platforming or avoiding obstacles in the stage.
KuwabaraTheMan
Banned
Damn, I was hoping that VLR could break into the Top 10. I guess we'll have to wait for Zero Escape 3. With that being my highest ranked game, this Top 10 is pretty far removed from anything I play.
Well, I recognize Gunloc. The rest of the names on my list don't sound familiar, but they all must have good taste in games. Also, all my affinity scores seem to be pretty low.
Well, I recognize Gunloc. The rest of the names on my list don't sound familiar, but they all must have good taste in games. Also, all my affinity scores seem to be pretty low.
WrenchNinja
Member
This being a weak year for games and the stipulation having to write something down for one game is probably the cause.
Cheesemeister
Member
It's basically the same algorithm that Durante previously used.
Code:
StreamWriter SW = new StreamWriter(strPrefix + "-user-affinity.txt");
ArrayList Scores = null;
User U0 = null;
User U1 = null;
int iResult = 0;
for(int i = 0; i < Users.Count; ++i)
{
U0 = (User)Users[i];
if(!U0.IsDisqualified() && (U0.GetNumGames() > 0) && U0.CommentsOK())
{
Scores = new ArrayList();
for(int j = 0; j < Users.Count; ++j)
{
if(i != j)
{
U1 = (User)Users[j];
if(!U1.IsDisqualified() && (U1.GetNumGames() > 0) && U1.CommentsOK())
{
iResult = 0;
for(int k = 0; k < U0.GetNumGames(); ++k)
{
for(int l = 0; l < U1.GetNumGames(); ++l)
{
if(U0.GetGame(k) == U1.GetGame(l))
{
iResult += 25 - Math.Abs(k - l) - k;
}
}
}
Scores.Add(new Person(U1.GetUserName(), iResult));
}
}
}
Scores.Sort();
// print out rankings to file here
}
}
SW.Close();All of one game I voted for made the top 20. Pretty bummed about Binary Domain missing the mark by three points more than anything though.
My affinity list:
Codeblue
1. IrishNinja (107)
2. bon (101)
3. stalker (93)
4. SpacePirate Ridley (84)
5. linko9 (79)
6. Darryl (76)
6. Neon_Icarus (76)
8. anon_mastermind (75)
9. Snowden's Secret (74)
10. Boogiepop (72)
I actually recognize a lot of these guys. Keep liking good things.
My affinity list:
Codeblue
1. IrishNinja (107)
2. bon (101)
3. stalker (93)
4. SpacePirate Ridley (84)
5. linko9 (79)
6. Darryl (76)
6. Neon_Icarus (76)
8. anon_mastermind (75)
9. Snowden's Secret (74)
10. Boogiepop (72)
I actually recognize a lot of these guys. Keep liking good things.
Dark Schala
Eloquent Princess
First of all, a very special thanks to timetokill and Cheesemeister for all their hard work and effort this year. It's very much appreciated! 
Second, thank you to everyone who submitted well thought-out ballots with lots of comments in them this year! I saw a lot of lists that I ended up taking the time to read and consider because you put the effort into it. I think the one comment required rule is great in that case. What it ends up doing is make me learn your name. Seriously! I don't really browse by avatar much anymore because I've seen so many people so often that I know your name. Or you've probably posted or listed something that made me learn a little more about you. So... yeah. Thanks for taking the time to write and share your lists! I appreciated it a lot!
Third, congrats to Journey. I may not be as fond of it as GAF is, and I may not look at it the same way as most members do, but I get it. I haven't read through the entire thread yet so I have no idea whether or not people like the result yet, haha.
Fourth, LOL at my list because I'm probably the only person who handed a vote to some of the games I voted for. Looking at Nayuta no Kiseki's tally makes me chuckle a bit.
Fifth, affinity data. I knew this year, I probably wouldn't show up on many lists because my list was outright weird from the start. I'm surprised people even showed up on my list, but nonetheless:
Dark Schala
1. Gunloc (64)
2. Lissar (56)
3. Andrew J. (43)
4. Eusis (42)
5. swoon (41)
6. LiquidSolid (40)
6. Toki767 (40)
6. ULTROS! (40)
9. Gigglepoo (38)
9. Phantom Flapjack (38)
It's funny when the affinity data from last year almost seemed incredibly predictable, this year, outside of Gunloc, Lissar, ULTROS! and maybe Eusis and Toki767, some of these I didn't really expect. Maybe it's cuz I don't see you guys around or I've noted that we don't generally have similar tastes at all.
I suspect that it's because some people had Virtue's Last Reward on their lists.
Also, I feel a little weirded out that the parser picked up Final Fantasy XIII-2 as an honourable mention when I didn't even give it one? I'd probably give the Gilgamesh DLC an honourable mention, but outside of that, lol. No.
Second, thank you to everyone who submitted well thought-out ballots with lots of comments in them this year! I saw a lot of lists that I ended up taking the time to read and consider because you put the effort into it. I think the one comment required rule is great in that case. What it ends up doing is make me learn your name. Seriously! I don't really browse by avatar much anymore because I've seen so many people so often that I know your name. Or you've probably posted or listed something that made me learn a little more about you. So... yeah. Thanks for taking the time to write and share your lists! I appreciated it a lot!
Third, congrats to Journey. I may not be as fond of it as GAF is, and I may not look at it the same way as most members do, but I get it. I haven't read through the entire thread yet so I have no idea whether or not people like the result yet, haha.
Fourth, LOL at my list because I'm probably the only person who handed a vote to some of the games I voted for. Looking at Nayuta no Kiseki's tally makes me chuckle a bit.
Fifth, affinity data. I knew this year, I probably wouldn't show up on many lists because my list was outright weird from the start. I'm surprised people even showed up on my list, but nonetheless:
Dark Schala
1. Gunloc (64)
2. Lissar (56)
3. Andrew J. (43)
4. Eusis (42)
5. swoon (41)
6. LiquidSolid (40)
6. Toki767 (40)
6. ULTROS! (40)
9. Gigglepoo (38)
9. Phantom Flapjack (38)
It's funny when the affinity data from last year almost seemed incredibly predictable, this year, outside of Gunloc, Lissar, ULTROS! and maybe Eusis and Toki767, some of these I didn't really expect. Maybe it's cuz I don't see you guys around or I've noted that we don't generally have similar tastes at all.
I suspect that it's because some people had Virtue's Last Reward on their lists.
Also, I feel a little weirded out that the parser picked up Final Fantasy XIII-2 as an honourable mention when I didn't even give it one? I'd probably give the Gilgamesh DLC an honourable mention, but outside of that, lol. No.
Screaming_Gremlin
My QB is a Dick and my coach is a Nutt
I really wish my PS3 wouldn't have broke earlier this year. It caused me to miss both Journey and Tokyo Jungle, both games I would like to play. Unfortunately at this point I have moved so far to just playing games on PC I can't justify the money to buy a new PS3. Maybe I'll have to bug one of my friends to let me borrow theirs for a bit.
Also a big thanks to Cheesemeister and timetokill for putting this together again. Great work as usual!
Also a big thanks to Cheesemeister and timetokill for putting this together again. Great work as usual!
What you probably want to see is the results of the "hipster" affinity list that gives more weight to niche games, I guess Durante didn't make that version this year.
Also that "similarity index" I think which is a decent iconoclast/populist quotient is missing.
Edit: Whoops, just saw Cheese's post with the code, looks like he did it himself this year, that's why.
jim-jam bongs
Member
Glad to see Spec Ops ranking, and also pleasantly surprised by how well Dark Souls did considering that only PC votes were counted. Thanks timetokill and cheese for the top notch work as always!
I would have voted for it if it was best double dragon award. Really funny game but not a very good game.
Cheesemeister
Member
I ported Durante's algorithm for affinity rankings, as seen above. I don't recall having seen the other algorithm. I'm sure his script will still work on this year's user data, or I could port another one. Or not, whatever.
Felix Lighter
Member
I love the affinity lists. It's also useful to see the games that I haven't played on lists that are apparently similar to mine.
I have the heap of games I plan on playing this year, I don't know how I'll fit new 2013 games in.
I have the heap of games I plan on playing this year, I don't know how I'll fit new 2013 games in.
Yup, just noticed your post and edited. Personally I'm super interested but clearly you've done more than enough work so don't mind me.
Dark Schala
Eloquent Princess
I just peeked into another thread where someone commented on my affinity with others being super-low, so I'm quite curious as to whether or not the hipster affinity thingy could be used this year.
I feel all left out, man. Aha, they've worked too hard already. Forget it.
Stealth games are entirely about avoiding obstacles in the stage!
Come on, ducky, that's a rookie mistake!
Cheesemeister
Member
My #1 game of 2012 Puzzle & Dragons only got 8 points
Guess it was too late to get noticed by the GAF community. Now it's popular enough I am sure it will become 2013's 2012 game of the year.
It won't be eligible for 2013.
Skel1ingt0n
I can't *believe* these lazy developers keep making file sizes so damn large. Btw, how does technology work?
I didn't contribute this year. I had a lot of fun with a lot of different games - namely Journey, Mass Effect 3, and Max Payne 3; and to a lesser extent Halo 4 and Xenoblade. But nothing really absolutely WOW'd me outside of Mass Effect 3, and so I just couldn't be willed to make a nominations list for games that were good but didn't have a lasting effect on me.
With all that said, my take-aways are:
1) Yes, Journey was great. It's a splendid title that has a lot neat vistas and a very cool gimmick. And certainly, TWD has a great story. But it really is sad that the two highest rated games are titles with some of the least amount of gameplay this year. Then again, I love MGS, so ho-ho me.
2) Like I mention in my first paragraph - I see a lot of games that are good in the Top 20; but very few that will go down as classics of the gen. Overall, an extremely weak year, IMO. Stuff like Dishonored or Far Cry 3 or Spec Ops could very easily be lost in the shuffle any other year. Even stuff like Sleeping Dogs strikes me as a good open world game with a fun city to explore - but nothing spectacular.
3) Halo didn't even break the Top 10. Strange days we live in. But can't say I can argue - the game is a lot of fun; a great game, actually. But it's a terrible Halo game.
4) Glad that Gravity Rush got some attention - such a "different" game on a lolVita system that it's nice to see people are recognizing it as a breath of fresh air.
5) AMAZING OP, and thank you for all the work that went into this. This is an awesomely put together thread.
With all that said, my take-aways are:
1) Yes, Journey was great. It's a splendid title that has a lot neat vistas and a very cool gimmick. And certainly, TWD has a great story. But it really is sad that the two highest rated games are titles with some of the least amount of gameplay this year. Then again, I love MGS, so ho-ho me.
2) Like I mention in my first paragraph - I see a lot of games that are good in the Top 20; but very few that will go down as classics of the gen. Overall, an extremely weak year, IMO. Stuff like Dishonored or Far Cry 3 or Spec Ops could very easily be lost in the shuffle any other year. Even stuff like Sleeping Dogs strikes me as a good open world game with a fun city to explore - but nothing spectacular.
3) Halo didn't even break the Top 10. Strange days we live in. But can't say I can argue - the game is a lot of fun; a great game, actually. But it's a terrible Halo game.
4) Glad that Gravity Rush got some attention - such a "different" game on a lolVita system that it's nice to see people are recognizing it as a breath of fresh air.
5) AMAZING OP, and thank you for all the work that went into this. This is an awesomely put together thread.
Cheesemeister
Member
It's no big deal. Not much effort would be required. If someone can link me to the algorithm, I can get to it within 24 hours.
Many thanks to Cheesemeister and Timetokill for compiling the everyone's game of year lists. Though I didn't necessarily expect LIM, Dys4ia, or Miasmata to make it into the top 100, I am saddened to see that no one else mentioned these games. I hope people get around to playing them, nevertheless. Other than that, I am glad Dragon's Dogma and Crusader Kings II performed relatively well.
Dark Schala
Eloquent Princess
Hm... I don't have the file anymore. Weird. Probably didn't back it up after I did a restore in summer. It's okay, Cheesemeister, don't worry about it. You guys have done enough work already.
And since people get a little ticked when the thread becomes more about the affinity lists than discussion:
It truly goes to show where the PSP was in 2012. Though I wonder if some of those votes for FIFA 13 and NBA 2K13 are multiplatform votes.
Actually, the vote count for it somewhat speaks to how many people purchased Growlanser because I heard it didn't do too well at all despite people asking for it. It's quite a shame, too, because it was such a pleasure to play last year. I'm happy we got a localized Growlanser after so long, but after this, gosh, I dunno if we'll even get one anymore. Which means I've gotta start importing them. :|
Yaaaaaaaay! I'm so happy this got in here. It's got such a good theme.
Cheesemeister
Member
They are. I can't be bothered to separate out titles by platform, especially when reporting is spotty at best.
Remachinate
Member
That's a good idea, I'll have to do the same in a bit.
Interesting that you say that. If we accept that the world of The Walking Dead is mercilessly harsh and there's no chance that things will ever get better, then what difference does it make whether Lee safeguarded Clementine throughout the game if she's as likely to die as all the other characters down the line? Please don't misunderstand me, I'm not saying a happy ending was necessary, but for there to be narrative value in survival, there has to be some chance for positive experiences at some point, whether that's hope for a better future or at least moment-to-moment happiness. Where TWD stumbled in my opinion was not allowing for either, diminishing the importance of survival. Hell, dying might be better in the world of TWD because at least you stop being miserable.
Dance Inferno
Unconfirmed Member
Haha this is turning into the GAF affinity list thread.
I didn't find the script or the algorithm itself but I found this post of Durante. Hope it helps:
Syph Medwes
Member
Wow the top 2 were close!
And awesome seeing Hotline Miami crack the top 10.
And awesome seeing Hotline Miami crack the top 10.
Dark Schala
Eloquent Princess
Yeah, I think I might have to take Nert's approach as well. Edit: nah too lazy.
Though my assumption is that the NBA/FIFA games were on other platforms and Warriors Orochi was for the Wii U version... *ponders*
Edit: nah too lazy.Well, yeah, that's true. Especially since it'll make the results a lot harder to sift through, I think since there would be X title for 360, X title for PS3, X title for Wii, etc. Some of those games where they're available on every single platform like NBA2K or FIFA might make it kind of iffy.
Though my assumption is that the NBA/FIFA games were on other platforms and Warriors Orochi was for the Wii U version... *ponders*
It was going to from the start. It usually seems to happen anyway.
GiantEnemyGoomba
Member
Dance Inferno
Unconfirmed Member
8. ilnadmy (86)
Sup.
Nocturnowl
Member
All of the statistics for this thread never cease to amaze me, a job well done.
You know I think the biggest surprise to me here is Sleeping Dogs at Number 4, I debated giving it my vacant number 10 spot but decided not to, it's probably the most fun i've had with an open world game this generation but then again it's not a genre I care much for either so i'm not sure how I feel about that.
Mark of the Ninja being at 16 stings me on two accounts, one is that it still deserves higher darn it! the second and more pressing point is that it's the first and only platformer (or part platformer) ranking in the top 20, here's hoping next year is stronger on that front, 2010 and 2011 were so good to me.
Random observation: Once you go beyond the unique top two everything below them until Virtue's Last Reward is some variation of shooting guys in the face, yep even innocent looking Kid Icarus or strategically shooting heads in the case of XCOM.
So basically through cutting edge research i've concluded that whoever marries strong shoot outs to a story driven emotional title has clearly got Gafs favourite game on their hands....if The Last of Us wins next year then I so called it with this scientific evidence.
To affinity and beyond! or something
I recognise most of these names, lets hug it out guys, whether you like it or not.
You know I think the biggest surprise to me here is Sleeping Dogs at Number 4, I debated giving it my vacant number 10 spot but decided not to, it's probably the most fun i've had with an open world game this generation but then again it's not a genre I care much for either so i'm not sure how I feel about that.
Mark of the Ninja being at 16 stings me on two accounts, one is that it still deserves higher darn it! the second and more pressing point is that it's the first and only platformer (or part platformer) ranking in the top 20, here's hoping next year is stronger on that front, 2010 and 2011 were so good to me.
Random observation: Once you go beyond the unique top two everything below them until Virtue's Last Reward is some variation of shooting guys in the face, yep even innocent looking Kid Icarus or strategically shooting heads in the case of XCOM.
So basically through cutting edge research i've concluded that whoever marries strong shoot outs to a story driven emotional title has clearly got Gafs favourite game on their hands....if The Last of Us wins next year then I so called it with this scientific evidence.
To affinity and beyond! or something
I recognise most of these names, lets hug it out guys, whether you like it or not.
Felix Lighter
Member
Are you serious about giving it a try? I have one extra Chivalry key in my Steam inventory and I'd like to give it to someone who is truly interested in playing it.
Was this like a sequel to the Madison Square Garden incident? lolI recognise most of these names, lets hug it out guys, whether you like it or not.
Great work timetokill/Cheesmeister/everyone else!
Thought Walking Dead would edge past Journey. Overall, I thought 2012 was a pretty good year. I actually had a lot more fun playing than I did in the overblown 2011, which burned me out on games for a good while. Nice to see a lot of independent/smaller studios get more recognition.
<3
Thought Walking Dead would edge past Journey. Overall, I thought 2012 was a pretty good year. I actually had a lot more fun playing than I did in the overblown 2011, which burned me out on games for a good while. Nice to see a lot of independent/smaller studios get more recognition.
<3
I think the problem here is that we've having totally different conversations. I don't believe "stealth" is a genre, but an objective context. The stealth doesn't matter to me when considering a genre.
Thief is an action-adventure game (genre). It's also a first person game (perspective). Deus Ex is a RPG (genre). It's also a first person game (perspective). Mark of the Ninja is a platformer or an action game (genre). It is also a sidescroller (perspective). Stealth doesn't factor into this because it's just a context of the objective in the game.
Metal Gear Solid is an action game (genre), and it is either a top down (MGS1) or a third person 3D game (perspective). While one of your objectives in stealth games is not to be seen while completing the goals of the game, how you carry out those goals is what defines those genres.
If you spend the majority of the game running and jumping between platforms to get to the goal, it is a platformer. Mirror's Edge is a first person platformer. Thief is not. In Mark of the Ninja you jump, climb on walls, and hop from platform to platform to avoid active traps and things which would kill you if you you fail to evade them. Totally a platformer.
Arlecchino
Member
I totally fell asleep, Vita in hand minutes before the results were released. Thanks for all the work done, namely Time and Cheese. Also thanks to everyone who took time to write explanations down. It was a joy to read.
That better explains the issue, then; you think stealth isn't a genre of gaming, and I do. Finally, we can agree to disagree!